Chasing Forever
by Abbywritesfanfiction
Summary: A forgotten story about the wolves lives after the events of Breaking Dawn. What is their purpose now that all of those events are over, or are they? What's to come of the two packs? Did imprinting really imply a happily ever after? What did this happy ending look like for each of them, and would it ever come? (Mostly Cannon, rated T for language and themes).
1. Chapter 1: Shennanigans

I'll start off by saying once and for all that any recognizable characters, plots, settings or other elements of this story that is not original does not belong to me. No profit is being made from this story, and all rights and unoriginal ideas belong to Stephenie Meyer, who has written the Twilight Saga, and any other respective owners whose ideas may have influenced this story in any way. This disclaimer applies to the entirety of the story and every such chapter or installment after this one.

(Now that that's out of the way...)

There are a lot of things I loved about the Twilight books, but when they ended, after Breaking Dawn, they hadn't quite ended for me. It seemed like there was still so much that we didn't know. There was a temporary peace, but would it last? What events beforehand had made the characters who they were? What was going to happen to all the characters who hadn't happened upon their endings yet, or even the ones who thought they had?

Most of my questions brought me back to the wolf pack. We learned any relevant back story of just about every Cullen, but we only learned the scarce details of the wolves as they were relevant to Bella's feelings. By the end of the saga the wolf pack had broken in half and was still left with a story and future in La Push, even though the Cullen's probably weren't. Most of the characters had names, or small characteristic details, but we still didn't know much about them at all. Several of them had imprints, but did that really imply a happily ever after? (Probably not, even good relationships come with a fair share of conflict). Did they have a purpose as wolves and protectors outside of conflict with the Cullens? (I'd like to think so). Would Nessie be able to find a (metaphorical) place there with Jacob? (Probably, but not easily). Are the people of the tribe aware of or affected by the wolves that defend them? (Seemingly not, several of the wolves seemed to have families that were all too unaware).

I'm pretty sure Stephenie Meyer once said herself that if she were to write another novel in the Twilight universe it would probably be narrated by either Nessie or Leah, because unlike Bella, their stories hadn't ended. I very much agree with Meyer in this sense, and this story will probably include a lot of them, though it won't be exclusive to them either. On the contrary, there are some choices of Meyer's that I don't _quite_ agree with, so this will admittedly probably have a few inconsistencies with Twilight. Most of them will probably be very minor, as the wolves and their families had minimal influence on the story in the first place, but if any of them are too distracting please let me know. For the most part, what's cannon will stay cannon. I don't like the age differences created by imprinting sometimes, so if a character seems older or younger than they would be compared to everybody else, they probably are. I also might get a bit more creative with things that weren't established, but most of what we know will stay the way it is. Sometimes I'll be reading another fanfic and something that they took the license to change (though it might not actually be _that_ significant) bothers me enough that I can't keep reading their story. I hope not to do that here, but please let me know if I do.

Lastly, before I get on to the actual story, I hope that you can enjoy it, and I'd really appreciate any feedback or reviews you're willing to offer. I have an idea about how I want it to turn out, but by story is still being written and published, so let me know if you do or don't like where it's going.

* * *

**Chapter 1: Shenanigans**

The woods were as dark as the misty night surrounding them, aside from the trail of light coming down from the yellow waning moon. There were two wolves, one was lean and shaggy, with a silver-white color, the other was the bigger-than-believable sort of large, in terms of both height and size, with brown fur that seemed almost black in the dark. Both were coming to a gradual halt near a flooding river that was about a hundred feet away from the northwest border of their territory.

_Beat you._

_You always do._

_But you still think you can out run me._

_For a while Jake and I used to be able to keep up with you. It took a lot more effort, but we had a shot if we were really, really trying and you weren't particularly. _

_You were trying just now._

_Yes, I was. _He admits. _But I think you've gotten faster._

_I don't think so. _She refutes.

_I do, you just don't realize, you're too busy moving. _

_Maybe I have...?_

_It's not a bad thing. You seem to like being fast, _he reminds, _Sometimes you even get a bit sadistic about it, you pointed out that you won._

_I like being good at something, _she confesses more solemnly, _even if it is going to get me killed one of these days…_

They both wandered off a little bit separately, though they were still really together. They usually had the patrol shifts together at this hour of the night, or what some might call morning. Quil and Leah hadn't gotten along so well in the big pack. Quil and Paul used to make games out of staring at her after she phased, and/or even stealing her clothes, sometimes with the company of Jacob and Embry, and so she would hold a grudge and never want to be around him, like the others. She never really got along wit any of them back then, but things were different now. He had imprinted, and in Jacob's pack they were all in much closer and frequent proximity, so they learned to get along quickly. Jacob's pack had since made a home of a large abandoned house they found in the north woods. It was huge, and very empty. It seemed fairly sophisticated and recently made, probably occupied at some point by a large family who didn't want to live in on the main village. There were no signs of life when they found it, and the elders conferred that it didn't belong to anybody anymore, so after some repairs, paint, and furniture it became a haven for them. It had its downsides too, it wasn't on any recognized road, and it didn't had any plumbing or wired electricity. Though they decorated it a bunch, it still seemed rather empty or something. It was a house, not a home. They learned to appreciate it though. It was far enough away from La Push that they could be themselves, but close enough that they could easily get back there when they needed to.

They wouldn't have to run around the perimeter again for another while. Their senses would warn them if there was any immediate trouble between now and then. Leah wandered toward the La Push beach. She sat a few feet behing the edge of the trees to conceal herself and watched the foam of the heavy waves break on beach in the night. Quil had a different agenda, he moved slowly towards Sam and Emily's house, on the outskirts of the southern side of La Push, and tried to peer into a window of the lower floor on the back of the house.

_You're a creep. _

_She's there. _

_Just like you knew she would be. You better hope nobody sees you._

_I haven't seen her face to face in nearly a week now. _

Claire had been back on the Makah reservation visting her parents. They more or less let her live with Sam and Emily now that she was older. Her aunt and uncle seemed perfectly willing to host her there, and she, for reasons her parents couldn't quite understand, seemed to like it there better. They still wanted her to visit, especially since summer had just started and she was done with classes for awhile, and so she complied, but Quil didn't like it. They'd been on the phone for a bit too long everyday that she was gone, but she got back last night, and he knew it.

_She's sleeping._ He nearly cooed.

_(Ridiculous) Of course she is, it's probably four AM right now. Aren't you the one that said you were going to let her sleep since she was getting back really late?_

_She's sleeping._

_You better hope she doesn't wake-up and see you. You'd terrorize her. (She still doesn't know.)_

_I know, _he admitted turning away now. _I really think I want to tell her this summer, I think she's old enough now. I'll have her stay with me at the bonfire, not leave again before she get's a chance to hear all the good stuff. _

_You should warn her, at least give her the right idea. (You realize) She's Makah, she won't take it seriously. _

_Are you going to the bonfire? (And he had to change the subject)._

_Jacob never makes me._

_I know he doesn't make you.(He doesn't make us do anything, If he did I wouldn't have to ask.)_

_I never go._

_(Else we wouldn't be having this conversation,) but you should._

_I don't have to. _

_You already pointed that out._

_Why should I? _All she could think of were reasons why she wouldn't. The other pack would be there, (they wouldn't want to see her). The elders/council would be there, (most of them didn't like her). When they gathered around to tell "legends" ( which they shouldn't be called if the tribe was ever going to get a grasp on the fact that almost all of them were now proven to be true) she would sit there awkwardly, not given credit as one of the tribes warriors and not respect the way that their significant others were. Why should she go?

_I'd be nice, to have a whole pack there for once, it seems like some of them have forgotten what you look like, or the fact that you're still around. _

_Why does it matter? Nobody listens to me. (Besides, not much ever seemed to go on at those meetings anyway.)_

_There's a lot going on now, a bunch of things are changing that we actually get to weigh-in on, you should be there. _

_Again, nobody would care, most of them really don't like me. _

_They don't have to like you, our genes and the magic of the tribe chooses us, not them._

_(How I wish the magic of the tribe didn't choose me somedays). I really don't think it would go well, and as you said, I'm all but forgotten about, maybe it's better that way. _

_Billy didn't forget about you, last time he said "Leah and the boys" when referring to us. _

_Perfect. That'll really change things for the better. _

_(She's always so sarcastic). What do you want then? You don't want to be forgotten, you don't want to be acknowledged, is there a way to win?_

_(I don't know). _She was solemn again.

_Claire will be there! _He tried to lighten the mood.

_That's motivation for **you**, not me. _She pointed out.

_She likes you, you know. I think she sees you as a sister or something. She says things the way you do sometimes, or she wears he hair the same way. _

_I don't know why, I've never given her much attention. (I don't dislike her, don't take it that way, but) She's there, with you, and I don't make any extra effort. Why would she like me, I don't even do anything with my hair. (Uggh, she reminds me of-)_

_(Your hair) It's too long again. _ He interrupted.

_I like it that way. _

_We know. _

She had grown it out a bunch; it was half way down her back again. Jacob was more laid back about these things, but it was becoming a problem again. They didn't want to pick a fight, because she liked it and she, for reasons they couldn't understand, felt more girly that way, but now that it was long again they started to worry if she would be able to run as fast as they needed her to when they needed her to. (It was a complicated problem.)

_She'll be happy when she see's you there. _

_If, not when. You really do have a way of making everything about Claire (who really only cares if you are there). _

_(Because everything IS about Claire). We can talk about your hair again if you'd prefer. _

_NO. _She stood up at the thought, (_what if they made her cut her hair?) _

_Don't get so freaked out.(It won't kill you)._

He was crossing back from the property to the edge of the woods now, but suddenly he stopped with an idea.

_Can we make a deal?_

_For what?_

_Your attendance at the bonfire._

_What do you think you're going to do that will make me want to go to the bonfire? (And why does he still care so much?)_

_(She's freakin' paranoid or something…) I'll shit on their lawn. _He offered.

_(_Now he had her attention, she cracked a smile, if a wolf could do that. It must be the animal part of her/them that made this idea seem so appealing._ (A huge pile of wolf shit on their lawn to wake up to, but) We'd get in trouble. _

_Maybe not, and just imagine how pissed he'll be. _

She had to admit that _(the thought of it was funny, but) No, we'll get in trouble, he has wolves on patrol now too, and I'd be surprised if they weren't already watching you. _Without really paying attention she was walking towards him. _(It was compelling)_

_Since when were you such a goodie two-shoes?_ He looked at her, she was fairly close now.

_I'm not, but something tells me this isn't going to end well._

_Those are called instincts. _

_No._

_(There she goes again). C'mon, I'll do it, just to see you smile. _The making Leah smile thing had become a bit of a game in Jacob's pack, in a good way of course. A few months ago Jacob, Embry, and Quil realized that she had a genuine smile hidden like treasure beneath the sea of heavy feelings that she was often drowinging in after they saw it come out when she was talking with Seth. The whole concept of Leah actually being happy about something was still rather foreign to them, but they knew they liked it.

He started to walk back out onto the lawn again. Not towards Claire's window_ (She wasn't supposed to be the first one to find it,)_ but he had to get close to the house. _(It couldn't look like an accident, that would take all the good out of it.)_

She took his place, on the edge between the woods and the property. Her presence wasn't obvious, but it wasn't too hard to notice either. _(She had a bad feeling about this. One of their pack definitely would have noticed if somebody got so close to their stronghold with questionable intentions.) This is still a bad idea. _

Quil went ahead. _I don't see anybody doing anything about it. _He remarked, but that changed as he turned back towards the trees.

Suddenly a very large wolf, about the same size as Quil, emerged at the edge of the lawn opposite of Leah, brown like Quil, but not as brown, with a mask of gray fur around his eyes (_Jared). _They agreed. He had another smaller wolf or two flanking him, but they didn't have time to recognize them, a single thought echoed through Leah and Quil's mind and they had literally a split second to act on it.

_RUN_

* * *

Thanks for reading! Hope you liked it, and that it didn't seem too, well, gross, if that's the right word. I know this prank of there's sounds a bit strange, but I was trying to write something I could really see them coming up with. Please let me know what you think!

-Abby


	2. Chapter 2: Taking Credit

Thanks to everyone who read my first chapter and Cinderfire16 for the review.

To clear a few things up: As best I knew, Jacob's pack consists of himself, Seth, Leah, Quil and Embry. I believe that's how it last was. Things were "resolved" between the two packs, they were both in La Push, but they still both existed. This story is meant to be *mostly* cannon. For example, I'm not changing any couples as they existed in the original universe, but I'm not opposed to changing details, such as Claire's or Nessie's ages so that it would be appropriate for them to be in relationships with Quil and Jacob (respectively). I don't like the "pedophile" rep the imprinting gets from those two cases. In this story Claire could be about seventeen, Quil probably still seems older, but she's barely and only currently coming of age to begin a more mature relationship with him. Nessie's probably right around fully grown, but not quite all the way there yet. (This violates the whole cannon thing because this wouldn't be happening at the same time, Nessie would have stopped aging after seven years and Claire was only three at the time, so she would have needed almost twice as long). I don't mean to make any changes that will take away from the story too much though, they'll both be a lot more involved this way.

* * *

Quil went ahead. _I don't see anybody doing anything about it. _He remarked, but just as he turned back towards the trees that changed.

Suddenly a very large wolf, about the same size as Quil, emerged at the edge of the lawn opposite of Leah, brown like Quil, but not as brown, with a mask of gray fur around his eyes (_Jared). _They agreed. He had another smaller wolf or two flanking him, but they didn't have time to recognize them, a single though echoed through Leah and Quil's mind and they had literally a split second to act on it.

_RUN_

* * *

Chapter 2: Taking Credit

_I told you. I told you. I told you. _It was a moan and an accusation all in one.

_We can take'em._

_That's so not the point right now. You still did it and he still saw it. _

_He's after you. _

_(I know, but) I didn't do it. _

_Nobody's going to believe that it was my idea. _

_Are you trying to get me hell? _

_No, I'm not really sure why's he's chasing you, you're the fast one. _

_He's keeping up. He's the other pack's fastest. _

_But you, Seth, and Embry are all faster than him. _

_He's keeping up. _

_Run, really run. Run like there's **actually** somebody chasing you. (because there is)_

She started picking up speed. _What about you? Why isn't anybody going after you? Anybody else wouldn've seen me, (had to be Jared)._

_There's pups, behind me, but I don't think chasing is the right word. I just keep moving and they sort of keep up. _

_So I get chased and you get to play a friendly game of follow the leader... _She remarked. _More pups?_

_Yeah, you would've known if you came to the meetings. _

_I don't really care, I don't need to know them. _

_You might. _

_I might not._

_..._

_He's still on you?_

_I don't think so. _

_See that?_

_Whatever._

_Let's both do the perimeter again, then I bet we're done. The sun's up, so It's probably after six by now. _

_(I missed it)._

_You try to watch the sunrise almost every freakin' morning. You can barely even see it through all the clouds around here. (Is it ever really any different anyways?) Besides, we had fun this time. _

_It's only fun because nobody's stalking after you._

_He's given up by now anyway, (she's paranoid) besides think of how annoyed he'll be. Just because we got caught doesn't mean it didn't happen. _

"_fun". _

_Pretend you mean it. _

_You wish._

* * *

Leah began a lap around the perimeter, passing Quil and two pups who simply stood still and stared after he took off and followed after her. After that she broke off the trail and started heading in the direction of the house.

She had a designated spot where she would leave her clothes that was both far and close to the house. She didn't really like the idea of tugging them around once she phased. They slowed her down, and the wolves had a smell to them. It wasn't necessarily a bad smell, (there were plenty of those out there too), but she didn't want to smell like one when she was in her human form. She also made a habit of washing off after she phased back. Showers were ideal, but there weren't any of those in the house so she would wash off in a relatively clean and seemingly private part of the river by her spot and take a real shower at her Mom's house when she needed it. She and Seth usually went over there for breakfast. She had a good relationship with her mom. In between there was always checking in with Jacob after patrols, so she and Quil had that task first. (Seth and Embry usually joined them) She didn't have to hurry though, Quil was going to go see/get Claire. It didn't really make sense to Leah why this reunion was so important that it had to take place first thing in the morning, but whatever. There wasn't really any breakfast food at their house anyway, most days Quil would be better off staying around _their_ place (because Leah didn't even think of _them_ with their actual names) for the food, but of course the early morning events could influence just how welcome he would be. Maybe it was better that Claire got out of there before everybody else was awake, at least for today...

* * *

At first Claire couldn't understand how Quil's truck had gotten so dirty, (it was gross really), but then, as he began to drive down the muddy trail, it became obvious. Claire wouldn't want to walk all the way to the pack house, but there wasn't really a road. There was a "trail" that they would use when driving there, but it wasn't paved and it went pretty deep into the woods. It disappeared into the mud each time it rained, and it rained almost everyday. And so, driving through the mist, trees, and mud, Quil's truck got dirty. If Claire was with anybody else she would be complaining and "acting like a girl" as he would accuse, but not now, not when she was with Quil. The truck slowed down as they pulled up to the house. It was still pretty dark out, and the house wasn't exactly a beacon of light, but the trees thinned out around it, so whatever light did break through the clouds came in.

Quil got out quickly and hurried around to open Claire's door for her. He kissed her on the forehead and let her by the hand into the house through a door on the far side that led into the kitchen area. The interior of the house wasn't as dark as outside. Their were battery lanterns (the kind that most people used for power outages) arranged all over in no particular fashion. Oddly enough, the house as they found it had an area with a counter and a table that seemed like it was fit for a kitchen, but there weren't any appliances present (nor even the old ones that didn't actually work). Leah was leaning against the counters picking out the dirt from under her nails next to Embry who was standing there checking the time as if he had somewhere else to be. Seth was coming down the stairs and Jacob was following behind. Seth stopped on the other side of his sister, and Jacob stood opposite of the three of them. Quil was leading Claire into the room, he stopped a few feet away from the rest of them to the right of Jacob.

"How'd patrols go?" Jacob asked somewhat casually. Quil was paying more attention to Claire, so the question defaulted to Leah.

"Um,… fine." She answered with a hesitation

"Um... fine?" He repeated as a question (exaggerating Leah's pause).

"Yeah," she nodded.

"You didn't find any traces of…?"

"Nope." She said flatly. They couldn't safely refer to 'it' with Claire in the room.

"So why was there an 'um'?"

She looked down, and Seth and Embry both looked over at her a bit confused. They could all tell she was leaving something out, and she knew it, but she wasn't about to tell them about the other events of the patrol. She didn't doubt that Jacob would find out, it wasn't the kind of thing Sam and Jared would let go. (They didn't let much go.) But that didn't mean that Jacob was going to hear it from her.

She looked up again and shrugged as if she didn't know what he was talking about, even though she knew that they knew that she was leaving something out. (Games.)

The next few seconds were awkward.

"How are you, Claire?" Seth changed the subject. (Thank goodness.)

"Good." She said with a yawn. Quil lifted her up to sit on the counter. (This wasn't her favorite hour of the day.)

"How are Sam and Emily?" Jacob continued in a sarcastically good-spirited voice he clearly didn't really mean.

There'd been some recent tension between the two packs. Sam seemed to think that the wolves were at their strongest together and that the packs should combine again, Jacob didn't like this notion, especially since it came with Sam's assumption that he would lead this pack. No, there wasn't any dividing issue over Nessie's or anyone else's safety, but Jacob, and he assumed most if not all of his pack, liked things better the way they were. He wasn't even sure if he could acutally chose to return with all of his pack to Sam.

Claire obviously wasn't really in on any of the real tension, though she was beginning to get the sense that Jacob and Sam didn't really like each other so much. Quil realized it would probably be more convenient for him if they got along or even merged into one pack, with Claire living with Sam and Emily and everything, but he liked Jacob's pack itself better, as did Seth, Embry and Leah. It wasn't perfect, and with less of them they had more patrols to cover, but they had this sense of a team, of family, of friendship, that didn't actually ever exist in Sam's pack (though it was probably the way that these packs were supposed to be). Sometimes everybody acted like it did, but it wasn't really there. There were too many people, and opinions, and misunderstandings; it never really benefited any of them.

Embry knew, though the rest of them didn't yet, that Sam was for a fact his half-brother. It did make Embry feel like he owed any additional loyalty to Sam, but he considered that more of a personal subject rather than a reason to be in Sam's pack.

Leah was really only vaguely aware of the issue being that she didn't attend the bonfire council meetings, but her disdain for Sam was understood.

Seth tried not to take sides on things when he didn't have to, but he did like the atmosphere of Jacob's pack better, and he also thought it was a much better place for his sister.

"Umm, good, I guess." She answered. "but, Sam was really angry this morning though, there was this nasty smell outside and he was _really_ not happy about it."

Jacob was about to point out how Claire's "um", unlike Leah's was accompanied by an explanation, (Leah often said and did things that really only seemed to make half the sense they were supposed to) but he didn't get the chance. Leah and Quil were already smirking.

Quil looked over at her and mouthed an "I told you so," and then a "Just picture it."

Leah started laughing, but then stopped a little bit, like she was trying not to but couldn't help herself.

Embry, Jacob, and Seth all cracked a smirk as well. Knowing Leah, whatever happened probably wasn't all that funny, but she clearly thought it was. It was also funny how, despite the fact that she was trying not to laugh, she was losing to herself.

The laughing picked put actually, because Quil and the others ended up joining in, even if they didn't know why. Seth was trying to remember the last time she was laughing like this. She never laughed much anymore, after she began phasing several years ago.

"Did I miss something?" Claire asked, seemingly more awake now.

"Apparently we all did." Embry said under his breath, but audibly.

Leah nudged him, and then looked up at Jacob, still smiling like she knew a playground secret. "I didn't do it." She denied. "I didn't do any of it." She said while shaking her head.

After that she got up, effectively ending the conversation, and gestured for Seth to follow her, as he did. As far as she was concerned this little meeting was over and she was free to go and get breakfast from her Mom's house before any other revelations came to light. They left out the side door, the same one that Claire and Quil came in.

Claire's eyes narrowed. (How were the two of them going to get anywhere?)

Jacob could only imagine what the rest of his day was going to consist of. Whatever happened would probably create more drama with Sam, but he wasn't necessarily sorry for it. Leah deserved to laugh every so often, even (or especially) if it came at Sam's expense.

"Somebody did it." Embry added, pretending to go along with Leah's notion that she didn't, though she clearly had some part in it. (Since when were "nasty smells" so funny?).

Claire realized that though it all took place in front of her in plain English, she hadn't understood most of the conversation. She felt left out. Quil and his friends were all in on something that she wasn't.

Embry and Jacob both looked over to Quil who grinned and nodded. To him it wasn't "fessing up" it was taking credit. Claire smiled, that was _her_ Quil.

* * *

Thanks for reading! Please review, let me know if you liked it and if it's worth continuing. I know its easier not to, but I'd really appreciate it, even if it's just short and simple.

-Abby


	3. Chapter 3: Breakfast

Again, Thanks to all my readers and Cinderfire16 for taking the time to leave a review. I really appreciate it.

This may not be completely cannon, but this is how I considered the ages of the wolves. (They're all relative, and based off of cannon events.) Sam would be the clear oldest. He was the first one to phase, and he had finished high school. Jared phased next, and therefore would be younger than Sam, but older than Paul. Jared and Paul were noted to be in the same year of school when they phased. Embry was the next one to phase, followed by Jacob. Due to the fact that Jacob, Embry and Quil were all best friends, I'd assume that they were in the same year of school as well, therefore they were probably all born within the same year, but Embry would still be the oldest and Quil the youngest of them. It wasn't mentioned that Quil phased until Eclipse, but Leah's phasing is tied to Harry's death, which was before the end of New Moon (the funeral that Edward thought was Bella's). Therefore, Leah probably phased before Quil, so she was probably born within the same year as them as well, slightly younger than Embry and Jacob, but slightly older than Quil. Seth was noted to have phased at the same time as Leah, but that's mostly attributed to the fact that it Leah's phasing set him off as well, so unlike the other wolves I don't attribute the time he phased directly to his age. Seth's probably younger than Quil, younger than the four of them by about a year or two, but not a long enough period of time that he couldn't have phased by chance before Quil. Brady and Collin were the youngest named wolves, so they're obviously younger than Seth. The "pups", which is a slang word some of the older/veteran wolves use, refers to the unnamed wolves that phased around the time of the gathering near the end of Breaking Dawn since so many vampires were close to their territory. Depending on whether you follow the cannon of the book or the movie, there were three to seven of them, but none of them had names or enhanced abilities, and they all had paws that they were yet to grow into. Some of the wolves that had phased before they were ready were noted to have looked like this by Edward in Eclipse (probably Seth at the time). The 'pups' weren't notable as individuals, but they were present as a part of the pack, presumably Sam's, and so I thought it would be okay or fair to include them too.

The age hierarchy of the wolves probably looks something like this:

Sam

Jared, Paul

Embry, Jacob, Leah, Quil

Seth

Collin, Brady

'pups'

* * *

Leah nudged him, and then looked up at Jacob, still smiling like she knew a playground secret. "I didn't do it." She denied. "I didn't do any of it." She said while shaking her head.

After that she got up and gestured for Seth to follow her, as he did. As far as she was concerned this little meeting was over and she was free to go and get breakfast from her Mom's house before any other revelations came to light. They left out the side door, the same one that Claire and Quil came in.

Claire's eyes narrowed. (How did they think they were getting anywhere?)

"I can only imagine." Jacob said with his arms folded. Whatever happened would probably create more drama with Sam, but he wasn't necessarily sorry for it. She deserved to laugh every so often, even (or especially) if it came at Sam's cost.

"Somebody did it." Embry added, pretending to go along with Leah's notion that she didn't, though she clearly had some part in it. (Since when were "nasty smells" so funny?).

Claire realized that though it all took place with plain English, she hadn't understood most of the conversation. She felt left out. Quil and his friends were all in on something that she wasn't.

Embry and Jacob both looked over to Quil who grinned and nodded. To him it wasn't "fessing up" it was taking credit. Claire smiled, that was her Quil.

* * *

**Chapter 3: Breakfast & Walls**

Seth and Leah walked through the trees back to their Mom's house.

"So enlighten me, what exactly did you 'not' do?" Seth asked his sister.

"You'll find out soon enough," Leah answered.

"Why can't I find out from you?"

She didn't answer.

"Maybe you did do it…" he teased, trying to get the story out of her.

"No, Quil did it." She corrected him with a shove.

"And you….?"

"Watched. I'm a 'guilty' witness."

"You don't seem so guilty to me." He pointed out.

"That's because I'm not." She smiled, shoved him, and began to run. Not a fast run, he could keep up easily enough, but it was part of the game. When it was just the two of them they might as well have been little kids all over again. They loved each other, and were relatively quick to admit it. Their mom loved them too, that's why they all stayed close.

After a few minutes they both slowed down and began walking again. "Do you think Charlies's going to be there?" She asked, thinking out loud.

"Of course," they answered simultaneous. He was always there.

"Do you think Nessie's going to be there?" Seth asked. Leah knew her better than he did, though Seth seemed more outwardly fond of her. Nessie was probably the closest thing that Leah had to a girl best friend, not that she would ever put it that way.

"I don't know," Leah answered contemplating. "She said something about some of her, um… _them_ being around, so I don't know if she'd still be here."

"Her _family_, they're her family," Seth reminded. They were another group that Leah didn't like to refer to by name.

She rolled her eyes.

"They're you're family too, you know. At least they want to be. "

Now Leah was annoyed. She hated referring to _them_, and now her brother was going to go ahead and refer to them as her family (just what she needed). Charlie and Sue had gotten married in a small legal ceremony almost a year ago. As far as Leah was concerned that didn't change her definition of family from herself, her brother, and her mom. (If she had an extended family, it was the other boys in the pack. Charlie just had an excuse to stick around a little bit more nowi.) Leah didn't want to consider herself related to them. She saw the connection everybody loved to point out. Yes, technically Charlie was now her stepfather and Bella was her stepsister, and even worse Edward, (somebody who she might actually dislike more than Bella), was now *technically* her stepbrother-in-law, if that even meant anything. The strangest part of all of it was that it somehow made Nessie her step-niece on Charlie's side and (eventual) cousin-in-law from her mother's side. It wasn't uncommon to be related to someone in the tribe in more than one way, since the tribe wasn't actually that big, but as far as Leah was concerned Nessie wasn't really part of the tribe, so it was flat out weird. Most of the time, Leah didn't care much. There was no reason for it to change her perspective on anything. They were still vampires, and vampires made her and every other one of the wolves what they are, and so she had an implicit disdain for them. (Nessie wasn't so bad, she didn't stink and she seemed to be able to turn off her vampire-side when she wanted to. Besides, Nessie was born that way, as unnatural and freaky as it all is.) Seth was delighted to be related to Edward, but what else could she expect from him. The real problem was that they were still expecting Leah to come around. _Them_. _They_ invited her to their Christmas festivities a few months ago. She insisted on not attending, but they still sent a gift back (the nerve, she still hadn't opened it). They'd give up eventually. She was all but sure of it. It didn't usually take her too long to push most people away any more, and there was no reason why they should be any different.

Charlie was 'of course' there, as he always was now. His car was visible to them in the side driveway as they approached from the trees behind the house. Leah didn't have much of a problem with him, but he did have this_ absolutely ridiculous_ expectation for she and Bella to end up as best friends or something. Charlie didn't realize that he might (literally) need to wait for the rest of eternity.

Now that they were a few feet away Charlie was holding the door open for them. He learned pretty quickly when to expect Seth and Leah. He still couldn't make sense out of their habits, the only thing more confusing was Sue's acceptance of them. Both of her children were gone almost every single night and would emerge from the trees behind the house, usually together the next morning. They both also seemed to forget to wear a reasonable amount of clothing too, and forget altogether about shoes. Sue never minded them on any of it, she was just happy they still came around. They would always eat and fall into relative routine after that. If Leah stayed she would go upstairs, shower, change, nap, things like that. Seth usually just crashed on the couch with his mouth open for a few hours. They were usually both gone again by noon, and often not seen again until the next morning.

"Hey Charlie" Seth greeted him with a smile as he entered through the doorway.

Leah entered too; she didn't say anything. Her silence was common, but something else wasn't right. (She might actually be smiling, and she didn't do that.) Charlie realized that these weren't his kids, but he had learned exactly what to expect from them. Leah didn't smile. In fact he hadn't seen Leah smile almost at all since her farther died. Sometimes Charlie wondered whether it was because she missed her father, but whenever the subject came up it seemed like Leah was more mad at her deceased father than anything else.

Once Charlie asked Nessie why Leah was still upset about/at Harry (it had been several years now). Charlie didn't know why or how, but Nessie seemed to know things like this, despite the fact that a lot of Charlie's questions (like this one) were related to things that happened before Nessie was born. Nessie answered that Harry had died in such a way that left Leah questioning if her farther loved/accepted her for who she was. Charlie didn't really understand that. Harry died from a heart attack. Nessie stated that it was more complicated than that and that Charlie was best avoiding the subject whenever possible (which he already knew). Charlie still hoped he might be able to fix it for Leah one day, even if he didn't really understand, whether it meant that he would find something Harry had left for Leah that she didn't know about, or even find a way to fix the hole that Harry had left. (Leah seemed to had a lot of holes, even to Charlie.)

"What are you doing here?" Leah asked when she noticed Nessie standing on the other side of the room. Nessie was actually there most mornings; she stayed with Charlie (and now them) most of the time, despite the fact that her 'family' no longer kept a permanent or frequently occupied residence on the Olympic Peninsula.

Charlie actually realized what the girls were talking about. (Most of what they said to each other never made much sense to him). "Bella's in town!" he exclaimed, obviously very excited to see his daughter. Leah was questioning why Nessie wasn't with her parents.

"She knows." Nessie added as if she had to. The girls were relatively fond of each other's company, but they chose to show it in a way that most people wouldn't understand.

Charlie couldn't help but notice the obvious differences between them. Nessie was dressed in bright and expensive clothing with her long red hair perfectly curled and pulled back in an intricate way that looked more like it belonged in a magazine than a small kitchen. She always acted very friendly and proper while still coming off as warm and caring. The propriety never became phony the way that you would expect it to. She didn't seem particularly strong, but she never needed the help that a girl of her size, thin and 5'7, would be expected to. Nessie never had a hair out of place and was always on time. Leah was a totally different picture. Charlie never saw her wearing anything other than a loose cut off t-shirts (that didn't usually or even typically cover all of her abdomen) and cropped denim or athletic shorts, even in the cold Forks winter rain. She changed often enough that she didn't look dirty. He had never seen the girl wear a pair of shoes, even as a kid (Nessie was never without heels). Though Leah seemed unusually possessive of her hair, the only thing she ever did with it was pull into a messy ponytail or let it hang loose. She had an inherit beauty about her, but she never made an intentional effort beyond it the way that Nessie did. Leah didn't seem to care much about who she offended, as long as she told the truth as she knew it and said what she felt she had to say. (He'd learned she wasn't one for holding things back.) In a sense he trusted her more than he did Nessie, because she was more honest in that sense, but sometimes the things she said frightened him. Nessie always seemed happy and never gave him any reason to worry, but he didn't feel like her knew her on the inside quite as well. If there was something that Nessie was worried about, Charlie wasn't going to know it. If Leah had an opinion all five feet and ten and a half inches of her were out in the open about it.

Leah and Seth both got themselves cereal and sat down at the table with Nessie, who didn't have any food in front of her. Charlie was, as usual, trying to make something, but they had learned better than to hold out for whatever that might be.

It was a little bit strange for Sue not to be there when Seth and Leah came in, but they just assumed that she had been recovering from a late night of work. She was coming down the stairs now anyways.

"So what kind of trouble did you make?" Nessie asked Leah.

"How'd you already know about that?" Seth asked Nessie curiously. He wasn't poking holes, he was genuinely as intrigued as he could be.

"Oh, she knows everything." Leah stated as a sarcasm-stained fact.

"Do I have reason to be concerned?" Sue redirected the question to her daughter as she entered the room.

"No, apparently she didn't do it." Seth added, jokingly mocking what his sister said earlier while nudgning her arm.

Leah smirked again. It was true, but the chaos it would cause might have been worth taking credit for.

"She's smiling." Charlie stated out loud as if he was trying to confirm it was actually happening outside of his imagination.

"She is," Sue agreed. She only wished it happened more often.

"Who did do it?" Nessie continued, though she probably already knew.

"Probably Quil," Seth added.

Leah still wasn't saying anything.

"Is somebody going to tell me what actually happened?" Sue tried again.

"Leah's not telling anybody. She didn't do it." Seth continued to tease, while acknowledging to his mom that he didn't know what happened either.

"What was your part in it?' Sue rephrased, still trying to get information.

"I ran away _very_ quickly." Leah said nonchalantly making direct eye contact with her mom, so that she would know that it was as honest an answer as Leah could (and was going to) give.

"Why'd you have to run?" Nessie asked, now getting a bit sadistic.

Now Leah was quiet.

The whole room went quiet after Nessie's comment. Sue and Charlie were having an irrelevant conversation by the sink (as if they weren't paying attention). Seth continued to eat his cereal, though he knew that the remark wasn't really left out there on its own.

Nessie liked being a force in the room. Her 'power' had only gotten stronger as she matured. She first learned to 'show' people without touching them. Now that she was almost fully grown she could more or less use her parent's powers too. When Nessie was able to combine these abilities she was her own sort of dangerous. If the mind was a bowl, Edward could see through it like it was made of glass. Bella's bowl was forged of a material so thick, dense, and colored that not even Edward could see through it. Nessie could reach into the bowl, and add something that wasn't there, or confuse something that already was. Nessie learned to see through the bowls too. She didn't do it the same way her father did; she only looked at one bowl at a time, the one she wanted to, and focused, but she still learned to do it, and she did it quite well. As Nessie grew she no longer had to touch the bowl to put something inside. Now that she too could see through the bowl, she learned to put something in carefully enough that the owner of the bowl didn't realize that Nessie had touched it. Nessie could ultimately fix thoughts in people's heads in ways that they wouldn't realize weren't their own.

Nessie admittedly liked being able to control (even manipulate) other people; she could use her powers, even though some of them were rather new to her, to her advantage. Leah was the only other really strong-minded person in the room, or at least the one that had Nessie's attention. Nessie _knew_ Leah's mind well enough to know that the question she asked would upset her. She _knew_ she was making Leah feel uncomfortable. (It didn't take a mind reader to see that Leah would rather be talking about almost anything else.) When Leah wasn't talking about it she wasn't thinking about it. When Leah wasn't thinking about it she didn't worry, but now what she was thinking about she was, even though she tried not so show it. Leah was the last person that liked feeling vulnerable. Nessie was purposely making Leah uncomfortable but she justified it as doing the other girl a favor in the long run. There weren't many people who would be able to see over Leah's walls, and Leah wasn't too fond of the idea of letting them down, so Nessie took it upon herself to break them. She really thought it was in the best interests of Leah, but she was beginning to do it more frequently and less subtly. Nessie was stripping away at all of Leah's defenses. Leah had become a lot less guarded in Jacob's pack, but Nessie knew from Sue that most days Leah was still a far cry from what she used to be. Nessie knew what her bond with her mother meant to her, and she wanted Sue to be able to have that with her daugher. Sue wanted back the girl she raised, and Leah was too guarded to remember the girl she used to be.

Nessie struck a sensitive chord in Leah, with the (relatively unimportant) question when she didn't have to. Nessie knew (now) why Leah didn't want to talk about it. What happened was (to Leah) funny when it happened. It was still funny to her now. But now, in the aftermath, Leah was starting to realize that there would be a confrontation about it (there's no way Sam and Jared would let it go). Jared had seen her and chased her away, so she was evidently involved in that way, even in that was the only way. Leah was dreading the mere thought that she would have to deal with them. Jacob would probably get her out of it as best he could, but something told her if they got their way (which they usually did) she would still be involved. (She wasn't all that fond of Quil right now.) Now she was involved in the problem. Now she had run away from something, and she had a reason to run away, and it was going to bite her, badly. Leah was worried, but again, she wasn't one to show worry. She was strongly bound by her emotions, like any girl of intuition would be, but she had gotten very good at concealing them. Leah had learned to be tough. 'Girly feelings' weren't forgiven by the pack, she was better off playing it tough, acting okay even when she wasn't. She kept it inside her walls, acted like everything was perfectly fine, at least around everybody else. Though Leah didn't know it, Nessie was against her right now, making the walls too weak and wearing away at Leah's ability to hold it all in. Even though Leah normally would and could, she somehow couldn't act like she wasn't worried. She was suddenly fighting an impulse to cry or something, but she wasn't going to let herself loose to it that much.

Leah got up and darted out the same back door that she and Seth had come in without saying anything else. (So much for the laughter.) She knew something wasn't right with her. She knew she wasn't going to be seen crying, even if she did have to cry. She didn't know that Nessie was the influence that made her too weak to fight with all of this, she just knew that she was.

You see, Leah didn't like the idea of crying or seeming weak or afraid in front of anybody in either pack, (with the exception of her brother who knew her too well regardless). She had gotten very good at acting static about things. With the help of her walls she seemed guarded enough that she didn't care. What she didn't realize (and Nessie did) was that the lack of 'girly' emotion made her seem, as they would called it 'bitchy' in another way. It seemed like she didn't care. It seemed like she didn't have concern, or anxiety, or regret, or fear of authority, or even real feelings when she really should. Leah thought it was better to be this way, better to show too little and be safe than too much and be vulnerable. The emotions that she did have, most of them very sad, and that made her a bitch in another sense with the big pack they were all once in. She couldn't help but be upset a lot of the time, but thoughts were contagious and feelings went with them. She thought she was better off burying it all somewhere else. She didn't want to show that she could hurt, or rather that she was hurt rather badly,( not that she wasn't still caught sometimes). The problem was that when the undiscussed events of the early morning came to a boil, as they obviously would, and it seemed like she didn't care at all, it wasn't going to go over well, and so Nessie wasn't going to let her do that, even if in the moment it was going to seem like it was boiling over a hell of a lot worse. Leah lost the mental warfare she didn't know she was fighting and was going to end up portraying her feelings about the incident the same way they were on the inside: (She genuinely thought it was funny, but was seriously afraid of the trouble in may cause now.)

Seth mouthed a "do we go after to her?" to Nessie. He didn't know what was going on, but he knew enough to know that Nessie did.

She shook her head. "_Somebody_ will be there. She'll be okay."

And there was somebody out there, somebody who knew her well enough that he was practically waiting for it, somebody who was gradually helping her to realize that it was okay to feel the way she felt, Somebody else who she didn't have to put on the act for, because he already knew how to see through it.

* * *

Thanks for reading, hope you liked it. This was by far my longest chapter yet, and I have more coming, but I couldn't find a point before that to break it, or enough irrelevance to remove, so you guys got all three thousand something words. I'd really appreciate any feedback, questions, constructive criticism, or ideas. I know that three of the last paragraphs, starting with Nessie, Nessie and You aren't structured the best way, I'll probably go back and fix that, but I've been having a hard time doing it on my own. I think it repeats a bit more than it builds, but I'd like to hear from you guys. Thank you!

-Abby


	4. Chapter 4: Intimate

Thanks to hgmsnoopy for writing a review for me.

Here's the next chapter. There are some more mature themes in this one. There's nothing that is worth a change in the rating as far as I'm concerned but it is a bit different than the other ones. There's nothing too intense for a teenager, which I, who wrote it, am, but you've been warned regardless. Thank you.

* * *

Seth mouthed a "do we go after to her?" to Nessie. He didn't know what was going on, but he knew enough to know that Nessie did.

She shook her head. "Somebody will be there. She'll be okay."

And there was somebody out there, somebody who knew her well enough that he was practically waiting for it, somebody who was gradually helping her to realize that it was okay to feel the way she felt, Somebody who she didn't have to put on the act for, because he already knew how to see through it.

* * *

**Chapter 4: Intimate**

Leah left, and she ran, and she kept running. She could run for a very long time, even in human form, and she knew it, but she wasn't going to. She knew where she was going, she had somewhere in mind. The objective was to get herself there as fast as possible on two feet. She could tell that there were a few wolves around, hidden in the trees, but it wasn't alarming or anything. It would probably be more alarming if there weren't. Jacob's pack had 1-2 wolves patrolling at a time, while Sam's pack had 2-4, except for meetings, but Jacob's pack did that earlier, so there were always wolves in the woods, and the people of the tribe were always safe. Nobody was going to pay her any attention though. The wolves had made a collective habit of spying on the frolicking humans who occasionally passed through (so stupid), but she was moving too fast to be one of them, and two slow to be anything of the threat, so she would, or at least should, be left alone.

When she got there she stopped. She got to her place, the same place by the house and the river where she changed before and after she phased. Nobody ever bothered her here, usually because she came for physical privacy, but she assumed she be left alone today too. There was enough greenery there that somebody couldn't see her accidentally, behind it there were a few feet of dirt and then a shallow part of the river that was a slower moving and wider than the rest. She sat down on the edge of the dirt and let her feet fall into the water. She covered her face with her hands for a minute and sighed, before she put them behind her back to hold heself up.

She thought she was sufficiently isolated, and so she started thinking. Why couldn't she hold her feelings in anymore? (She felt a little bit better now, after running, getting herself alone, it was much easier to think.) Why did the happy feeling turn into worry? (Was she afraid to be happy?) Why after all this time was she still so uncomfortable with the pack? So much confusion, but most of it wasn't new to her. Sometimes she just couldn't make sense out of her life anymore.

"'You okay?"

She jumped. She thought she was alone, and was apparently too busy thinking to notice him coming.

Embry laughed and came closer to sit next to her. He saw her Leah run over, and got permission from Jacob (who he was patrolling with) to go check on her.

"No sharp objects." She said half-heartedly answering an unasked question.

"Good." He said quietly and seriously, as her put his arm around her. He had somehow managed to catch the really dark side of her a few months ago when she got really upset about (he didn't even remember what). He found her cutting herself. Leah, the girl who was brave and strong and tough and held up a fight against vampires, was her own worst enemy. She told him she wasn't actually trying to commit suicide (she wouldn't be successful anyways) and he believed her easily enough. She went through so much mentally, and emotionally. It wasn't that cutting herself made her feel better, it was that it made her feel something, and she thought she deserved whatever physical pain accompanied it. She was smart enough not to do it when (she thought) other people were around, and she healed too quickly for anybody to notice cuts or marks. Shock didn't sufficiently capture Embry's reaction. Who knew how long she had gotten away with it without getting caught?

Embry had mostly ignored Leah is the past (since they hadn't gotten along so well), especially since being in Jacob's pack, (he didn't usually have patrols with her anyway). He had been going through a few trials of his own when it happened, but she became a much bigger concern of his after it.

To his surprise she wasn't even mad a little bit embarrassed, but she was mostly relieved. (He cared enough to find her.) She didn't really have anything to say, she knew it would get back to Jacob and probably Quil (which it did, and he made his own efforts to cheer her up, like shit dumpings on the lawns of people she didn't like), but she asked very specifically for her mom and her brother not to find out. She knew it would hurt them (and Embry knew she was right) and that was the last thing she wanted. (She did have a heart, she just wasn't one to show it.) Embry listened to her there, but he also made it his responsibility to find her when she was upset and stop her from hurting herself again, especially if her family couldn't. He also told her that they would have to find out if she didn't stop. She told him she would, but he knew that even though she meant it when she said she couldn't promise it. He'd witnessed his mother's own bouts with depression when he was growing up and she struggled to make the life that she wanted them to have. Depressed people didn't mean to do terrible things, they just seemed to lose to the hands of their emotions. He wasn't sure if she actually hadn't cut herself again, but she told him that she hadn't and he had yet to catch her. She really truly hadn't done it, though she understood why he didn't completely believe her. She was annoyed by his concern at first, but eventually she learned to appreciate it. He had helped her a lot, more than she was willing to admit.

Someway, somehow, he always showed up just when she needed him. It was better when she had somebody else around, even though she wasn't always nice to him and wouldn't usually say anything, (at least at first). Embry's first concern whenever he found her was whether she was physically harming herself, (thus her comment about the sharp obejcts,) though he had made a habit of sticking with her afterwards. He didn't know why or how he found her either, but he always did. It was almost like he could feel when she was in pain, and it had only gotten stronger since he found her the first time. The best part of it was, to him, that in the end he would see her smile or hear her say something funny (when she was herself, she was hysterical). Embry couldn't help but love her when she was happy. When she smiled she was a different person, she seemed to radiate happiness the same way her brother did (and she once did). He was willing to deal with the depressed girl anytime he had to if it meant that he would be able to find the happy girl again. There was something so beautiful, and yet after all she had been through, so innocent about the happy girl. Her smile was contagious to him, and so no matter what shit of his own he was going through, if she needed him, he would find her.

She didn't understand why, but when he found her, he made things better. She leaned into him, the side of her face on his left shoulder, his arm around her back and his hand resting on her side. There was something about him that made her feel so safe. All the sudden she was okay again, though she probably wouldn't be if he went away. This is the part that worried her.

Embry gave her a high from her life. When she was with him she was great, but sometimes, when he left, she was all the worse. She could handle that, but she couldn't fight the fear it brought to the back of her mind. He could very well imprint, and by extension forget to care about her. Her relationship with him wasn't persay romantic, but it was still intimate. She hated to admit it (to herself, nobody else would ever hear it) but she wouldn't be okay if he stopped caring. She didn't think about hurting herself this time, because she knew that if (or when) he came, she would have let him down, and so it wasn't even an option. If she _knew_ he wasn't coming, it would have been. She didn't know if she would be able to pick herself up without him there to dust her off. Funny thing was, he still hadn't imprinted, and she (and he, himself) couldn't help but wonder why. Leah didn't like the whole imprinting thing, but she was smart enough to realize that there was a pattern to it. All the boys who had imprinted did it during a specific age range. It was actually an age range that Seth was approaching, and she was afraid she might lose her bond with him to it. There was hope though, Jacob and Quil had both imprinted and were still very good brother-like friends to her. She decided not to treat it like an inherently bad thing. Seth deserved happiness, and she wasn't going to ruin it for him by casting him out of her life after it (as she initially planned to). If she wasn't going to let Embry's discovery upset her brother, she wasn't going to do it with her actions either. Embry was the exception to this. When his friends passed through the age range, they both imprinted, ...but he didn't.

In Embry's mind he wasn't the only exception: Leah hadn't imprinted either. She preferred to think it wouldn't apply to her, esspecially now that she was closer to okay. In her mind she would find the right person to be happy with when she was ready to be happy with somebody, but she also didn't think that there wasn't anybody out there that wasn't part of her life already that would understand her. The worst part was, she knew that if it ever did happen to her, she couldn't be unhappy about it. She didn't ever want to bend completely to the whims of somebody else (that's what guys are for). Billy though it was a reproduction thing anyways, and as far as she was concerned, she was infertile, which might actually serve to her advantage in this aspect. Imprinting was also something stated in the legends to happen between the warrior man, and his mate, a woman. Unfortunately, this couldn't be taken to mean that it wouldn't apply to Leah, since the legends always and only mentioned males as the tribe's warriors. That was another part of the reason why she didn't attend bonfires. It was sor of offensive to her, and even though everybody at those bonfires knew about her nobody bothered to change it. It was always 'him' and 'the father of' and 'his sons' and 'sons of the tribe' and 'the brave boys'. They were still read this way even now, and it didn't do any favors for her self-worth.

"'Ready to talk?" He asked her. She always came around, sometimes it just took longer than others. It didn't seem like it, but a good half hour had passed now. She had pulled her feet back up out of the water. Her knees were bent, and her torso was across his lab as she faced up at him. Something like this always happened, without either of them ever really paying attention to how. The position seemed a bit more suggestive than innocent, but she trusted him, and for whatever reason they both felt better when they were close like this. They both missed having a somebody to be intimate with, and even though this relationship wasn't quite like that (or, they were kidding themselves) they compensated for that with each other.

Her eyes looked right up at him. "No," but she wouldn't ever be ready, so it would interpreted as a yes. She took a breath and opened her mouth to say something, but he started for her with the information he had spent the rest of his morning gathering.

"So sometime early this morning you and Quil were frolicking around in between perimeter runs and he, the fool he is, was drawn to Claire who arrived back in La Push some late hour the night before. Before leaving the area he decided to take a dump on Sam and Emily's lawn because he knew you would, as you previously did, find it hysterical. But then Jared came and rained on the parade by chasing you away and now…" he trailed off waiting for her to continue.

"And now I'm afraid of the trouble it'll get me into."

He raised his eyebrows and nodded. This was a bit more honest of a story than he usually got from her the first time around.

"I don't think it'll be as big a problem as you seem to think." He said, honestly enough.

"I do." She refuted, solemnly.

"You're wrong, because…" he trailed off again

"Because." She urged him, slightly annoyed now. He wasn't going to call her wrong without a valid reason.

"Jared didn't say anything to Sam about you." He said sweetly, gently, as if he was giving an explanation to a naïve child. He didn't even counter the irritation he heard in her voice. She was like a box that had a 'handle with care' sign that most people either conveniently ignored or found the print too small to be worth reading. People weren't careful with her, even though she was fragile. He was careful though. He was gentle so that when she was with him she wouldn't break any more. The cracks weren't going to heal if new ones were always being made.

She was genuinely confused now, and her face portrayed it.

"Like you said, you didn't do it. And…" he paused again, studying over her.

"And," she prompted impatiently.

"And they're not out to get you." He practically whispered in a half-hearted tease.

Now he really wasn't making sense to her, and he knew it. He had to clear it up soon though. This wasn't going to end well if she thought he was lying to her.

"Even if he knew," (which Leah was sure he must have) "it doesn't necessarily spell trouble for you."

He paused, trying to find the words he needed, the ones that would make his point to her and inflict the least possible pain. He placed his hands hand on her sides. He wasn't using any force to hold her there now, but he was prepared to if he had to, if she decided to run. His gesture also acted as a warning of that. If she was going to get up and run he would try to stop her, and she knew he was stronger enough to. She tightened up a little bit in response. Even if he didn't mean to hurt her, he realized what he was about to say could very well drive her off, otherwise he wouldn't have any reason to prepare himself to stop her.

"I know they've wronged you," (_them_ now being Sam and Emily) "and I'm not making excuses for that, but they're not bad people, Le. Sam's not a bad guy." If Embry were to add the part about how Sam cares about her she would definitely get upset, (she didn't even consider that possible, not with the way things were left) , but she seemed okay right now, so he wasn't going to push his luck if he didn't have to.

He stared down at her, waiting for her to say something. She waited. She didn't like what he had to say, but she had to come up with a good enough reason to counter it (even if she knew, deep down in her somewhere, that it was, at least partially true). He felt like he had just set off a time bomb without knowing when it was going to explode.

"I think you're biased." She countered with a hint of sass.

This one really caught him off guard. The turn of events that revealed Embry's relation to Sam happened right around the time Embry had caught Leah hurting herself. Ever since then he and Sam both made an effort to be a part of each other's lives, to spend time together the way they would have if they grew up knowing they were brothers. Embry hadn't be open to his pack about this, he was still accepting it himself. Leah had no way of knowing about it, though the veteran wolves all preferred to assume it was that way, she seemed to implying it was the absolute fact that only Embry and Sam (and Emily) knew it to be. Now he was the confused one.

There wasn't a way for her to know about that (right?). She must have meant something else and he interpreted it that way do to the sensitivities.

"What?" he countered. It wasn't like he knew what she was actually talking about.

She wasn't amused, but she decided to be gentle with him too. He wasn't rough on her sore spots. "Cut the act," she paused, being as straighforward as she was. Then, as if she was afraid to say it, she continued quietly "You're sticking up for your brother."

She really did know. He didn't know how to react at all this time. If she had been bitchy about it he would have gotten mad, after he took the time to comfort her. But, unlike the girl that a lot of the other wolves thought she was, she wasn't obnoxious about it. She stated it like the fact it was.

"How could you know about…?"He started to ask her, genuinely confused, but he didn't even finish the sentence. He was really caught now, and he probably would have gotten angry with almost anybody else. He was just plain puzzled right now, and he wanted to hear her answer, because she owed him a good one.

She wasn't going to make eye contact with him now. She had made him mad, which really truly wasn't her intention. She _had_ figured it out though, and it was fair for him to ask why. It was hard, because she didn't want to make it sound like she was even remotely fond of Sam, but she didn't want to hurt Embry any more right now either, and that seemed like more of the current priority. This was as honest as she had had to be in a very long time.

"The two of you…" she paused like he did, only he didn't interrupt her while she found her words. He stared down at her very intently, though she completely averted his gaze. "You're a lot alike." She continued. " I don't mean that in bad way, it's just something I noticed. I know, or at least I used to know, both of you very well." This kept getting harder. "And there's something there, there's something you both have that Quil and Jacob don't." She didn't want to admit that it was a good something, so she stopped, but she wasn't going to get away with that.

"What is it?" he asked. Whatever it was she had obviously avoided metioning it. He wasn't trying to be hard on her, even though he knew he was now (she had already made the effort). He honestly wanted to find a connection with his brother, because, though they got along, neither he nor Sam readily saw it. They wanted to find a common ground. He knew this wasn't going to be easy for her to explain though, he was actually waiting for her to snap and say something about how she hates them both and run off. (If she said that, he would probably let her run, she wouldn't be worth holding any more. Neither of them would be helping the other.)

For whatever reason, she resolved herself to really try for him. For whatever reason, Embry Call seemed to be worth it. "You both have this, this, attitude I guess it is, or maybe demeanor's a better word. You're both quiet, and serious, but, … really…," she paused. She didn't want to lay this one on Sam.

"really," he prompted now. This was the happy girl who was trying. This was his Leah, who let her walls down for him.

"really… caring," she looked up at him now. (What had she just done?) "You're more laid back, but the two of you have a similar personality. Whatever you do, you do it because you really think you're doing it for the right reason." She could elaborate more, like how he had gotten rather protective of her, the same way that Sam once was, or how she trusted him in a way that was even stronger than how she once trusted Sam, or even how they had the exact same expression on her face when they got mad, but she wasn't going to admit to those things, and she didn't have to.

He wasn't even going to have to point out the fact that Sam still cared about her today, because she had just more or less admitted that she knew it. She'd just given him a lot right there, but it meant a lot too and he wasn't going to give her a chance to regret it. She had kind of amazed him right there.

This was the girl he loved. Embry leaned down and kissed Leah.

* * *

As you've probably noticed , this is going in a "Callwater" direction. I don't want to take the liberty of inventing another character for Leah to be with, and I'm not going to take liberty to break apart a cannon pairing, but I do think she deserves to be happy with somebody. If it weren't for the whole fear or imprinting I think they could have had a fair shot. Maybe they will now. I'm not making any promises, especially since I haven't decided how this relationship will go, but I'd love to hear your ideas. When people leave Cannon they usually write about her being with Jacob. Though I acknowledge that they formed a bond during the events of Breaking Dawn, I really never saw it as romantic. Jacob imprinted afterwards anyway, and though I don't usually like imprinting, I'm not going to defy it. Most cannon Leah-centric Fanfics seem to have her paired with Nahuel, but I really don't see that working out. She strongly dislikes vampires and (unlike Nessie who can be with Jacob safely) Nahuel's venomous, and feeds off of people, who Leah and the other wolves defend. . It would be dangerous for her, he couldn't kiss her or hold her the way Embry did (not to mention the largest age difference any Twilight couple would have that it would create).

I hope you enjoyed this, but if you did, could you please, please let me know? I haven't gotten many reviews lately. I'll also admit that my college schedule picks up again this week, until early April. I'll have less time to put towards this story, you probably won't see so many updates regardless, but please let me know if they're appreciated and I'll do my best. I'm more motivated to write when I know that people are reading or even enjoying these chapters, though constructive feedback is appreciated as well.

-Abby


	5. Chapter 5: Nothing

Thanks to brankel1 for the simple encouragement.

Here's my first next installment. I'll warn you right now that this one is mainly just Embry and Leah sorting things out in the aftermath of that kiss and whatever it means. A lot of this was originally part if the last chapter, but it seemed like a cleaner end to end it where it was. There isn't really much in terms of the story progressing, and I'm sorry if this sort of bores you guys, because I know it isn't my best, but I'll get to more soon. That's why I originally numbered it a little bit creatively. I don't think it adds that much on its own, and I don't know if the story would really change much if it omitted it, but for the time being, here it is. Enjoy?

* * *

For whatever reason, she resolved herself to really try for him. For whatever reason, Embry Call seemed to be worth it. "You both have this, this, attitude I guess it is, or maybe demeanor's a better word. You're both quiet, and serious, but, … really…," she paused. She didn't want to lay this one on Sam.

"really," he prompted now. This was the happy girl who was trying. This was his Leah, who let her walls down for him.

"really… caring," she looked up at him now. (What had she just done?) "You're more laid back, but the two of you have a similar personality. Whatever you do, you do it because you really think you're doing it for the right reason." She could elaborate more, like how he had gotten rather protective of her, the same way that Sam once was, or how she trusted him in a way that was even stronger than how she once trusted Sam, or even how they had the exact same expression on her face when they got mad, but she wasn't going to admit to those things, and she didn't have to.

He wasn't even going to have to point out the fact that Sam still cared about her today, because she had just more or less admitted that she knew it. She'd just given him a lot right there, but it meant a lot too and he wasn't going to give her a chance to regret it. She had kind of amazed him right there.

This was the girl he loved. Embry leaned down and kissed Leah.

* * *

**Chapter 5: Nothing or Something**

Her body rocked a little bit, responding physically to the surprise, but he kept her there and kissed her.

As soon as he did it he realized he probably shouldn't have, for her sake, but he still wanted to do it, and he realized that if he stopped suddenly, and made it look like he regretted it (which he didn't,) and she would probably be hurt more, so he didn't.

In her head, she knew this was wrong. She knew this was a bad idea, and he could change his mind all too easily. She knew that she should have fought, but somehow she couldn't. The feeling of it made her melt. It couldn't be more wrong, but somehow it felt so right to her. She couldn't even think straight. She knew it was a bad idea, but she couldn't help but want to be close to him.

The feeling was mutual to him. He couldn't be made to regret it, not right now with her in his arms. He felt a pull to her, a pull that was only getting stronger. He wasn't sure what was going through her mind, she wasn't participating as actively, but she hadn't fought him either, at all. He knew it was still a bad idea, but he couldn't help but savor, while it lasted. It felt too good to end, but he knew he had to.

She opened her eyes once he stopped, but they were afraid to meet his. She didn't know what to think of what just happened. She had been honest with him, because he deserved it after all the times he had been there for her. But now, all the sudden, everything had changed.

He studied her. She was visibly nervous. Her hair was messy, but not too messy, mostly to one side of her face. Her eyes were open, but they wouldn't look at him; she didn't know what to think. Her lips were swollen, and he couldn't help but appreciate that he had done that to her

"Calm down," he whispered as he leaned in. She felt his warm breath on her just as he moved in to kiss her again. This time it was more delicate, sincere, even sweet. There was no urgency in it any more.

She opened her lips and moved them against his. It was wrong, but it was perfect too. His warm hands moved under the hem of her loose t-shirt to the smooth skin at her hips. It was intimate, but it was okay. She felt loved, and maybe even happy.

* * *

He could see the glimpses of a different future when he looked at her. It was far away, and even further fetched, but by some magic he could see it.

He could see her come through the door of his house after early morning patrols. He was there in the kitchen to greet her with a kiss. Neither of them looked notably different than they did today or any day in the past few years. After a minute two little familiar looking dark-haired kids entered from the other direction, ate a few bites of food, and walked out the door together with backpacks after the smaller one shared a goodbye hug with Leah.

Alone again, he and Leah ate and talked about plans before they took off for the morning meeting.

Once they returned he lead her into a large earth-toned bedroom and closed the door to the empty house only to hold her against the back of it and kiss and touch her until she lost her composure and they got tangled up on the bed. After that they rested, showered, and shared a sweet embrace before he left and she stayed, waiting for the children to return.

When they did the little one was excited about something, but the older one was unhappy. She handed the little one a cookie and sent the child outside to play , while the older one sat on a stool near the elevated counter top and waited impatiently while Leah pulled out the choice ice cream to share as they talked over it until it all seemed okay. Suddenly the smaller child burst through the door, wet and muddy from the rain and hurried to their bedroom to change. The little one returned (with mismatching clothes that the older one mocked but Leah ignored) and insisted on receiving their own bowl of ice cream, which Leah agreed to, pulling a different flavor out of the freezer. After a few minutes the children both left to do schoolwork and whatnot, and Leah hesitantly took a phone call.

Sometime later, once the sky was getting dark Leah was waiting by a large window on a side of their house near the forest. She was called by one of the children, and went to go see what they wanted. Meanwhile, Embry came back through edge of the woods where she was watching a few minutes before. He came in through the door, seemingly a bit surprised that Leah wasn't there to greet him. The little child came running towards him full speed ahead, scraped up knee, formerly teary face, and all. He hugged the child as he lifted it into the air all in one movement. Leah came from the same direction slowly, not meaning to intrude on their moment. She leaned against the wall with her arms folded and a slight smile. The older child emerged in a similar fashion, and walked forward asking for and receiving Embry's attention once the younger one had both feet on the floor again. He followed the older one down the hallway, and kissed Leah on the forehead as he passed. The little one went outside again, being that the rain seemed to have lifted and the sky wasn't. After a few minutes Embry returned to the kitchen by himself where Leah was standing near the sink and watching the child play from the window. She didn't really respond when he entered, but she did turn around once he got close. He lifted her up onto the countertop and kissed her passionately. Their hands tangled up in each other's hair as they embraced like they had been apart for far longer than hours. They stopped, holding hands and looking into each other's eyes.

They checked the time and smiled at each other before getting up. He went outside to fetch the little one while she went down the hallway to urge the older child, who was the last to return to the kitchen area before they all got their things together to leave. Leah had a hard time justifying why the children needed to wear jackets when she and Embry didn't intend to do so, so she let them decide for themselves. The little one came back inside and demanded Embry's help in getting the coat off the wall that he won't admit that he couldn't reach. The older one seemed visibly cold but was too busy being cool to comply. Leah seemed to let it go by slyly grabbed a jacket before she locked the house before everybody else left.

* * *

He pulled away again. It was similar to the first time, but different too. This time their eyes locked. He couldn't help but think that her eyes said more than her words ever would.

"'what's wrong?" he asked her quietly, as if he was afraid of the answer.

"What, …just, … happened"? She asked shyly, pausing between each word.

He helped her sit up next to him.

"We made out." He stated matter-of-factly with a teasing smile.

She smiled back at him, just the slightest bit.

He kissed her on the forehead.

"It's okay," he said sincerely with a soft smile as he shook his head. He didn't want to her to worry about what happened. In fact, he was happy that it happened. He wasn't going to let her turn it into a bad thing.

"I don't even…" she started again.

"Me neither." He teased again, in a combined attempt to lighten the mood and cut her off.

"It's okay, It's really okay." He tried to assure. He was both amused by and disappointed with the fact that she couldn't seem to accept it. He smiled again, but it was a more shy one, he was almost afraid she wouldn't be convinced.

To his surprise, she smiled back. This was the smile that only a very few lucky people ever got to see from Leah. To him it was the greatest thing in the world.

The clouds above them moved and a large clap of thunder echoed through the trees. They both rose to their feet very suddenly

Leah seemed to take it as a reason to take off, but Embry grabbed her wrist before she could and turned her back around before she got the chance.

"Where are you going?" he asked her. He had to use a louder voice now, competing with the sound of the rain that began to fall down heavily.

She shrugged. "I don't know. There are lots of places I could or should go, not as many that I want to…." She thought out loud, "Probably back to see my mom."

"You know the Cullen's want to see you." He reminded her as they moved back under the trees and bush for better cover from the rain.

"Seriously? What, do you have some kind of newfound allegiance to them too?" (There was the defensive side of her returning again, but) She didn't like that he was encouraging this on her too. It seemed like everybody was doing this. (At least everybody she encountered regularly, which was less than she could count on her two hands). Everybody was always reminding her to "be nice" , and go to the bonfire, and visit the Cullens. It was really getting old. Embry and Quil weren't usually ones to 'encourage' her much either usually, but at some point during the past few weeks they both seemed to cross over to the metaphorical dark side that only really existed in her mind. She knew she shouldn't be mean to him, but he'd probably get annoyed and leave her alone once she did.

"No, last time I checked you were the one that was related to them." He reminded, not getting discouraged. He already knew her well enough to see past this.

"Don't remind me." She protested with an eye roll. "Why are you encouraging this? You don't have ties to them."

"It would make them happy, they really seem to care about you, and from what I can tell, mostly from Jacob and Seth, they seem like caring people once you learn to look past the fact that –"

"They're bloodsuckers?" She interrupted him, unamused. "Why would I want to make them happy? I don't owe them anything." (It was always all about making other people happy.)

"You would make Seth happy."

He was right on this one, but she wasn't going to let him win. "Seth's always happy."

"You can come with me." He offered.

"No!" she said, sounding offended and crossing her arms. She had a pretty good idea where he was going, and she still had no intentions of going anywhere near the other proverbial _them_, even if it was with him.

"You've gotta go somewhere." He reminded.

"I'll go back to my mom's house." The phrases "the house" or "my house" were no longer sufficient in conversations like these, since she could mean either her mom's house or the large powerless house where the pack resided when they had no other place to be.

"Isn't that the place you ran away from?"

She said a mental 'dammit' but she wasn't going to let him win out loud. She could probably go back there anyway.

"So?" she asked, as if she didn't get his point.

"I don't want you to get upset again." He said more seriously, taking hold of one of her hands.

There was still a very dominant part of her that wasn't comfortable with the whole people-actually-caring thing. She still wasn't all that good at trusting people, letting them in. Even though this was actually really sweet she was afraid to let herself appreciate it.

"I'll be fine." She said in an annoyed yeah-whatever manner and took off.

He watched as she left. He was actually a little bit impressed that she decided to go back and handle whatever happened by herself, assuming that she was telling the truth on where she was going.

He was really caught off guard today by how well she knew him. He knew how to read her. He knew she didn't typically hold anything back. He knew how to find her when she was (really) upset. He knew when she was hiding something. He loved when she was happy. He hated being away from her for too long. He knew that she was usually too stubborn to concede. He knew that she was a girl of highs and lows. He knew that she acted strong and tough, even when she didn't always feel that way. He knew she loved her Mom and her brother more than anything else in the world. He knew that she had a pretty strong friendship with all of the other members of Jacob's pack. He knew that there was something about her that he never had the words to explain. He was caught off guard by how quickly she ran off when he expressed concern.

Thankfully, today, he knew that she was good with secrets. She wasn't going to tell anybody else about anything that happened or was said unless she literally had to (because wolves work like that sometimes) or unless Embry very seriously spited her, which he had no intentions of doing.

Going forward, they had _nothing_ figured out. That kissed might have changed everything, or it might have revealed the same _something_ that had been there all along. They were both left thinking about each other.

* * *

Thanks so much for reading! You see what I mean, about it not really being necessary or a whole new chapter? I didn't want it to seem to mushy between them, and I don't want to start an immediate shift in what they are to each other, which at this point should still be somewhere hazy between best friends and something 'else'. It would be crazy awesome if you could leave a review of any sort for me, and let me know what you thought, whether this chapter's worth keeping. More updates to come very soon. Thank you!

-Abby


	6. Chapter 6: For Seth

Thanks to Cinderfire16, who, with the fact that I wrote this chapter before I posted the former one, might be able to predict the future. Also many thanks for hgmsnoopy who also wrote a review for me. I'm glad you're both back.

I recently reread a lot of Breaking Dawn, including book 2 narrated by Jacob. (I read the original books a lot when I work on this, both for ideas, and to keep in cannon with the characters.) That's what got me into the mindset that Leah really just can't seem to stand the Cullen's, even though (she knows) she doesn't have a rational basis for it. At the same time, Jacob remarked that she seemed to have gotten to a much healthier place mentally, and being that this story is some time after the events of Breaking Dawn, I imagine that she's even healthier than that. I did bring up the cutting in chapter 4, but that was something that I would have expected to have gone on for a long time before based on what I know about her situation and the way she reacts to things.

Sorry that I got into that so much. I want this story to make as much sense to you guys as it does it my head. In terms of the middle part of the last installment it was a fantasy, or a daydream, or something else like that: probably never going to happen, vague enough to keep everybody wondering, and vivid enough to create a visual regardless. For instance I meant not to assign a gender to either of the kids, so that you couldn't expect that to the gender of a kid of Embry's or Leah's if they actually come into existence somewhere far down the road; but, you probably still assumed a gender to each of them based on the way they were described. Embry and Leah will have a lot to figure out, and at this point I'm not even entirely sure if successful they'll be. I just wanted to establish that there's something there.

As always, enjoy reading and keep in mind that feedback is always appreciated.

* * *

"Don't remind me." She protested with an eye roll. "Why are you encouraging this? You don't have ties to them."

"It would make them happy, they really seem to care about you, and from what I can tell, mostly from Jacob and Seth, they seem like caring people once you learn to look past the fact that –"

"They're bloodsuckers?" She interrupted him, unamused. "Why would I want to make them happy? I don't owe them anything." (It was always all about making other people happy.)

"You would make Seth happy."

He was right on this one, but she wasn't going to let him win. "Seth's always happy."

"You can come with me." He offered.

"No!" she said, sounding offended and crossing her arms. She had a pretty good idea where he was going, and she still had no intentions of going anywhere near the other proverbial_ them_, even if it was with him.

"You gotta go somewhere." He reminded.

* * *

**Chapter 6: For Seth**

When Leah got back to the house again, she proceeded very quietly and cautiously. She didn't want to draw any attention this time around. There was probably nobody left in the kitchen so it was safe enough for her to enter through the same door she did before. She was careful to close it behind her quietly though, not wanting to make any extra noise. (Seth would know anyway, but he'd probably let it go for now.)

She was quiet all the way up to her room. Nobody, (well, most people) wouldn't bother her once she was in there with the door closed. She took a shower. (She was lucky enough to have a bathroom right off her bedroom). She had been relatively clean before, but she had sat on the ground and gotten soaked on her way back in the rain. The warm water felt good anyway. She always tried to turn it up so high that the temperature of the water felt hot against her skin, but didn't typically succeed (wolves had those kind of problems). After she showered she wrung out her hair, put on a fresh set of clothes and collapsed onto her bed. She laid on her back and alternated between staring aimlessly at the chipping white paint on the ceiling and closing her eyes and pretending there was more order in her life.

She didn't pay any attention to whatever time had passed. Seth would remind her when she had to be somewhere again, being that they usually had afternoon patrols together. She was just drained right now, physically and emotionally. Physically it was relatively normal for her. Wolves required a lot of energy to do what they did, and she wasn't the best at eating and sleeping enough to replenish it. She was better now than she used to be. She didn't eat much at all for the first while that she was a wolf. Sam's pack was very much centered at his and Emily's house, where she never wanted to be. Even when she had to be there for a meeting or something getting a fair amount of food would involve getting it from Emily and fighting with whoever else was interested in it, neither of which she was willing to do. She also realized that even though her body always wanted food, it was strong enough to make way without it. She had long gotten used to the feeling of a painfully empty stomach. She probably didn't look so good, but she didn't have any reason to care anymore, and nobody else seemed to either. As long as they got what they wanted she would be left alone. Now she did a little bit better in terms of food. Nobody in Jacob's pack seemed particularly qualified and interested in cooking, not that they really even had the oven to do it with. They typically had a daily takeout pizza meal together and fended for the rest of their meals in the woods or by themselves. Pizza wasn't a particularly nutritious meal, especially on a daily basis, but there was always enough for her. Sometimes they would say that she was healthier and stronger just off of that, and maybe she was. In the beginning, when she started eating again, she wouldn't keep it down too well; her body seemed to have literally forgotten what to do with food. It still happened sometimes, like when she ate a little bit more than usual, or held off for a few days for some reason. Even if it was still less than normal for a wolf she always ate now, which was at least positive progress. She and Seth also frequently got breakfast back at their home, but that one didn't work out some days. Sometimes it was because somebody forgot to restock the fridge. Other days were like today, when she ran off. She hadn't been particularly good at sleeping either. In the original pack it was sort of unspokenly justified to give her a late night patrol since she wasn't considered to be somebody who had somebody else to go home to. It stayed relatively similar in Jacob's pack simply because he wasn't creative enough to change it, and that he wanted two wolves out there during the night. (It made it easier for Embry when his Mom was at home that he didn't have to be out during the night, but every other one of the four wolves took a shift.) For that reason, Even when the stretch of darkness was divided up, they all got a piece of it. Wolves could stay awake all of the night when they had a job to do. It was part of their instincts, so it was never a problem for her. She just couldn't get much quality sleep into the time that she had left. Today was also particularly draining in the emotional category, due to the other events of the morning. Some days she just felt like she was going to collapse, but she knew that her body was stronger than that. Still, she gave herself whatever (attempt at) rest she could get.

She was just starting to finally relax when she heard a knock on the door.

(It must be Seth.) "Yeah?" she asked. Now that her eyes were open and she was looking at the time. She knew it was earlier than they had to be somewhere.

"Can I come in?" her brother asked.

"Uh, yeah." She replied, sitting up and putting her feet back on the floor. She was already alert again now, and she had never been good at saying no to Seth.

He entered cautiously, almost as if she might have booby-trapped the floor.

She gave him an expression equivalent to a "what?"

"You don't usually close your door." He elaborated.

"So?" she shrugged.

"You did today."

"I know" she nodded. He_ did_ have to open.

"And you ran off before."

She rolled her eyes. Everybody always loved to remind her when she messed up, even though Seth probably didn't mean to.

"You okay?" he asked, leaning against her dresser.

"I'm fine…bad day." The first part was almost a groan.

"It was a good day before." He reminded her. Seth always managed to dwell on the good. He still didn't even know why she was laughing before, but she was and that was enough to make it a good day in his book.

She didn't say anything.

"Going anywhere?" he asked encouragingly.

"Nope." She replied. She knew what he was getting at now.

"You could-"

"Not interested." She cut him off.

"Please," he practically begged.

"Fine."

"Really?"

"NO."

She hated it when he did this. She hated saying no to him. On the contrary she really, really didn't want to go. "Seth" she gave the same pleading tone back to him.

"C'mon Leah, they really want to see you."

"I bet they couldn't care less…. Did they hold you up to this?"

He shook his head

"You'd make Charlie happy, and Nessie happy."

"I don't owe Charlie or Nessie anything, besides everybody's day is going to go just fine without me there."

"I bet Jacob will let us out of patrolling if I tell him that _we're_ going over there."

"What's wrong with patrolling?" she replied. They both knew that though she rarely complained running patrols wasn't one of her favorite things to do.

"Please Le?"

He was _so_ hard to say no to.

"Please Seth?"

"Do it for me, I want you to." Now he was playing on the fact that she didn't want to let him down. It wasn't really like him to pursue his own interests like this, but he probably believed enough that it would be good for her and the rest of them in the long run.

"You'll be happy anyways." The same argument she used on Embry.

"No I won't. "

She didn't answer this time. She really didn't want to go. She didn't like them. Even if she didn't _hate_ them, she knew she didn't like them. She held them a large part of responsible for the fact that she was the way she was. Most of them seemed very cold and strange to her anyways. Part of that was attributed to the fact that they were vampires, but there was also a strange dynamic in that house that made her very uncomfortable.

"Why Seth? Why does it seriously matter that much to you? Why do you need me to go there?" She was being fair and honest with him now, and so she expected the same back, (and it better be good). She didn't even look up at him the whole time she said it.

"Because Le, … because our family's broken and we didn't used to have the pieces to fix it. Sure the pack's a family, but you know that that's not the same thing. They want to be our family Leah, and I want to fix our family, but it'll never be family, or my family without you, and you won't let them." The last part became an unintentional accusation, but he was being as honest as she had asked him to be.

She understood him a little bit too well. He was looking to feel the void that was created when their Dad left so suddenly and took a piece of their Mom with him. She knew that void too. She also realized that she had probably contributed some to Seth's void, because she wasn't usually the same girl she used to be before she phased. Sometimes it seemed to him like that girl came out less frequently than the sun shined in La Push, but he didn't give up on her and she owed him for that. A lot of days she felt like filling her void too, but she wasn't sure how to do it, and she had never ever considered the Cullen's to be any part of the answer. Their dad once hated them. He hated them so much that he asked their Mom to work at the hospital in Seattle rather than the one in Forks when they came back around and a certain one of them took up a job there. On the other hand, Seth had managed to bury their dad's prejudice with their dad and she respected him for doing that. Seth and Jacob had both managed to somehow see the Cullen's as people. She wasn't so good at it. She didn't particularly want to be either. Embry and Quil didn't seem to particularly care or be of concern to them, but they weren't as difficult about it as she was either.

Now she regretted asking for that honest answer. It was a better one than she wanted or expected to hear.

"What am I supposed to say to that?" she asked him in a defeated tone as she flopped back down on the bed. There wasn't a right answer anymore.

"So you'll come with me?!" he asked again, suddenly excited.

"I didn't say that." She adamantly denied.

"But you meant it!" he reminded, even more enthusiastic.

She didn't say anything. He had the smile of a kid in a candy store right now. Seth was typically happy, but not this happy.

"C'mon, let's go." He got up and just about left out the door, but she wasn't moving. He took another few steps out, thinking she might follow him, but she still didn't.

He came back, tugged one of her arms and just about pulled her to her feet and her behind him. He had pulled her around whenever she didn't willingly cooperate since they were children, but it worked better now that he was bigger than her. Some days he even seemed to think it made like he was older than her, which she was always quick to assert that he was wrong and that we was still, in fact, her little brother. The other wolves in Jacob's pack had made a habit of teasing her about her height, calling her the 'runt'. It was all in good fun, so she didn't usually take it any other way, but there was also an understood underlying implication. She was the only fully grown wolf that was less than six feet tall. Granted, she was only and inch and a half from it, and she knew that her body didn't work quite the same way that theirs did. Most of the time she didn't really mind it that much. It wasn't as significant of an inch that she really felt much smaller when she was around the other wolves. She was still unusually taller than any normal human she encountered. The other possibly related side to it was that she as a wolf, her wolf, was far smaller than the others in her generation. She was the fastest, and this might have been part of what allowed for it. But she could never fight as well when she was lacking the size and power that the other (veteran) wolves had. She was almost always one of the first and most seriously hurt of them, even if it wasn't that bad it was drastically worse than everybody else because she really just didn't have the strength that they did. Granted, she may have gotten better now that she was eating and running more, but it wasn't enough to make a notable difference for her. She still wasn't six feet tall, even though she still couldn't decide if she wanted to be or not. (Did it really matter or change anything?)

Once they got out of the house Leah sort of followed after Seth on her own. She still wasn't enthusiastic and had a way of dragging her feet the whole way, but she still followed.

When they had gotten close, out of their immediate territory and close enough to be in visible distance of the house, Leah stopped.

"Seth?"

"Yeah?" he turned around.

"Do I have to?" she whispered.

He rolled his eyes jokingly, the way she would. He shook his head disapproving, and smirked. This was her sense of humor. She was really great at being appropriately ridiculous.

"C'mon." he smiled. He was about to take her hand when Nessie came running out, genuinely excited in a way that she wasn't usually.

"You're here!" she said it like she was still trying to convince herself.

"He made me." She gestured to and stepped away from her brother like he was responsible for a crime. "I only did it for Seth."

* * *

I always planned on her ending up at that house, I just knew she wouldn't do it too willingly. This chapter was based on the idea that though she wouldn't do it most circumstances she would make it happen "for Seth". Let me know what you thought of this, or rather what you think will happen next. Will she get along with them? Will this change the 'family' relations for the better? Also, if I were going to write another chapter or string of chapters focused on a different character, who should I chose? You shouldn't feel obligated to answer these in any way, I'm just curious. Any relevant review will make me very happy, so please consider writing one. As always, thank you!

-Abby


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